Peregrine Winter

Johnny Winter is an albino blues guitarist from Texas. Texas is a fairly tolerant place, but I can only imagine the difficult childhood (if only trying to keep out of the scorching sun) Johnny must have had. His success is, I believe, in part, a response to his condition and his uniqueness.

In a similar way, apart from obvious cultural or social influences, the name one chooses for a child can profoundly affect their future development.
The psychosocial affects of being called John and the implication that you'll meet many other Johns in your lifetime and possibly share classrooms, lectures, offices etc are marked in comparison with someone who has a more unusual name.
I have only ever met one other Cliff in my life and I think that has affected me and (although only slightly) given me a kind of uniqueness that I can take pride in.
I know there are many famous and worthy people who share names with many others, however if one is to give one's children the best chance of success (whatever that means) in their lives then choosing an unusual name is the best approach. How unusual to go is the next question and leads to mental turmoil between parents the world over who can't decide between Tarquin and Rainbow. I once worked with a fellow called Rainbow, which highlights one of the problems of having an unusual name: sometimes it can cause more hassle and be downright problematic.
So it seems there is a balance which needs to be struck between a name that is unusual, but also fairly well known. Cliff fits the bill on that score and I thank my parents for it. The name Max also fits.

Of course there are many factors that contribute to someone's life, but a name can have more of an affect that most people think.